Silesian Station

by David Downing

Book Overview

Summer, 1939. British journalist John Russell has just been granted American citizenship in exchange for agreeing to work for American intelligence when his girlfriend Effi is arrested by the Gestapo. Russell hoped his new nationality would let him safely stay in Berlin with Effi and his son, but now he's being blackmailed. To free Effi, he must agree to work for the Nazis. They know he has Soviet connections and want him to pass them false intelligence...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1569475733
• ISBN13: 9781569475737
• Release Date: May 2009
• Publisher: Soho Crime
• Length: 336 Pages
• Weight: 0.65 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 5.0" x 7.4"

Customer Reviews

Maintaining a high standard

*Silesian Station* picks up immediately from *Zoo Station* in the period immediately prior to the invasion of Poland in August/September 1939. The author continues to explore the slide toward war, the continued tightening of restrictions on the German population and the possibilities of resistance, particularly directed towards saving German Jews. Contrary to the sole 1* reviewer, this has little to do with Alan Furst's evocations of Europe in the 30s, which are never seen from the British or German perspective. It focuses more explicitly on everyday life, and while it would be hard to say that this has the complexities of a routine Eric Ambler spy vehicle, it does contain significant drama. Again, contrary to the lone dispeptic review, the tension of the book rests on the sheer inevitability of the slide to war, which was well recognized across Europe--few had any real illusions about the Nazis, the only question was how long the war could be sidestepped. Overall, this is an excellent piece of writing in a field this is admittedly well ploughed, to some extent by Furst and particularly by Kerr's Bernie Gunther. The author has managed to create a plausible character and I for one look forward to at least one sequel.

Support example of Historical Fiction

This was a great read - a fine example of historical fiction. I lambasted a book by the same author a few weeks ago (The Moscow Option), but this is what David Downing should be doing. This is the second book in a series that takes place in Nazi Germany - largely Berlin - at the cusp of WW II. There is a certain black humor through out the book; the mood of the German people is nicely captured, and the picture of Germany on the brink of war is brought to life. The central character is a journalist who ends up trying to help people escape some of the horrors of the Nazis, and in doing so becomes a double agent. Perhaps a bit contrived, but it is a great mechanism for doing what historical fiction should do - bring to life a time and era and give words and actions to people you do not ordinarily meet in academic histories. I also recommend his pervious book in this series, Zoo Station

Pre-WWII tour de force

"Silesian Station" is a fast-paced account of the Third Reich's march toward all out war in the summer and fall of 1939. Author David Downing's protagonist, John Russell, is an Anglo-American journalist who winds up with a foot in every political camp as he tries to protect his German family from being swept up in the coming onslaught. The plot line in this book is driven forward with an almost breathless narrative that includes many intriguing details of how ordinary Germans were living and coping in the pre-war years of Hitler's Reich. A lot of first-rate research had to have been done by author Downing to put together the exciting and persuasive story that runs from page one. There are fascinating details about the Silesian border areas where the German invasion of Poland eventually takes place--including credible descriptions of how local Nazi party offiicials dominated social life down to the village level. This inevitably involved the state-sponsored bullying and eventual destruction of Jewish communities and individuals. That persecution and the many other forms of it practiced by the Nazis is threaded carefully throughout this account of espionage and international duplicity by the various governments that employ protagonist Russell in this story. "Silesian Station" is right up there with the writing of Alan Furst, Philip Kerr and, at times, even William Shirer. An excellent read with few false notes by a gifted writer.

more a historical tale rather than a suspense thriller

In 1939, British journalist John Russell hopes to remain in Berlin if war breaks out between his homeland and the Nazis. However, the Gestapo arrests his girlfriend, actress Effi Koenen, accusing her of spying. They use her as a pawn to get Russell to work for them passing misinformation to the Russians. He already has a deal with the Americans to spy for them in exchange for a passport and offers a deal with the Soviet if they help him flee the Nazis if he needs to escape suddenly. While he is wheeling and dealing, the parents of Jewish Miriam Rosenfeld worry about the safety of their daughter in Silesia. They send her to live with her Uncle Thomas in Berlin where many more Jews reside; safety in numbers being their theory. When she fails to arrive, Thomas visits his former brother-in-law, Russell asking him to find her as the police refuse to look for a Jew. John agrees. Though well written and exciting, SILESIAN STATION is more a historical tale rather than a suspense thriller. The espionage segues serve more to bring out life in Nazi Germany's police state whereas the search for Miriam is the exhilarating suspenseful subplot. Fans will enjoy the return of Russell (see ZOO STATION) as he navigates life as a journalist covering the Third Reich. Harriet Klausner

At the Far Edge of WWII

David Downing's novel (Zoo Station) proceeds with breakneck speed, pausing only for food and sex, but not an overabundance of either. Zoo Station is an apt title, for it captures metaphorically the odd mix of politically caged creatures that populated Germany in 1939. Downing's research is remarkably intensive, for if one reviews a map of pre-war Berlin, it becomes evident that he describes in accurate detail the geography of the old Berlin. Protagonist John Russell is a journalist, a thoroughly good man and long-time Berlin resident who is an Englishman with an American mother, a German ex-wife, a German son, a German girlfriend, and a communist past. Downing's sympathetic characters reveal a confusing combination of hope and disbelief that Adolf Hitler's new German is headed in the right direction. Downing's Nazis commit unspeakable acts, as might be expected. Plenty of derring-do on the menu, as Russell finds himself arranging for the escape from Germany of a Jewish family, shedding light on one of the horrendous "medical" plans of the Hitler government, and knuckling under to the demands of Russians who can expose his communist connections. The plot is complex, the language literate and easy to read, hard to put down. The mood is reminiscent of the works of Alan Furst.